I know it’s confusing, all this internet and technological mumbo-jumbo being spouted by politicians, technologists, Hollywood, the news media and just about everyone else (including myself). I won’t pretend to be an expert or anything of the sort but I have tried to understand what’s happening and why. It appears that SOPA has been shelved for the moment but that doesn’t mean that there aren’t various other types of bills ready to jump in its place (“The Protecting Children from Internet Pornographers Act of 2011” , I’m looking at you). I’m not saying that trying to fight copyright infringement or piracy is inherently a bad thing (although it is a whole other can of worms that I won’t get into here) but I do think there are better ways at trying to achieve those things other than the bills that we are currently being presented. If you have no clue what any of this is even about, suffice to say there are bills trying to be passed through Congress that will essentially allow the government to shut down/and or prosecute any user-based websites. To put that into perspective, here are just a few of the sites that could be affected and that therefore could possible disappear forever:

Wikipedia

Facebook

Youtube

Etsy

Twitter

Ebay

Amazon

Craigslist

Reddit

All blogs (including WordPress which includes the blog you are currently reading)

This list is in no way guaranteed but I can guarantee that a bill like SOPA would completely change the way that the internet as you know it operates. For a supposed democracy, this bill is appalling and even if the media tries to brush it under the rug, you should keep your eyes and ears open and ensure that you’re educated. Because if you don’t stand up for your rights, no one else will.